All of us long for those beautiful spring and summer days, especially if you are smack in the middle of a very cold winter. Placing plants in all your rooms sure does help to brighten your day and raise your spirits, but to really make your home a haven from the winter blues, you absolutely have got to take advantage of placing trees within your home.
Norfolk Island Pine
The delightful symmetry of the Norfolk Island Pine, with its bright green furry needs, makes it a Christmas favorite throughout the world, but unlike the Christmas tree, this delightful pine will be with you all winter long and for many years to come.
Each year, a tier of branches is added to the existing tiers, springing upward and outbound from the central trunk. It grows to giant size in its native Australian coastal areas, but in your home will grow about 6 inches per year and add a new tier with a thick covering of needles on pendulous branches that cascade like a waterfall.
The Norfolk Island Pine grows best if placed near a bright window with indoor temperatures of approximately 55° to 80°F (13° to 27°C). As the tree gets larger, remember to repot the tree using a well-aerated potting mixture containing 50% or more organic matter. Water thoroughly, then allow potting mixture to almost dry before watering again.
Australian Umbrella Tree
Another Australian favorite, the Umbrella Tree has a soft green canopy that is an excellent choice for rounding off your indoor garden. The foliage is highly glossed and appears waxed as it radiates out from a long, slender stalk like the ribs of an umbrella..thus its name.
This majestic tropical tree complements every interior and it is a low cost purchase as well, since it is well adapted to the warm, dry atmosphere of the home and can survive in low to medium light.
Astonishingly long lasting, this tree can reach 12 feet in height indoors and dominate its setting. Outdoors, it can produce a shower of deep purple umbrella-like flowers, but this is never seen indoors.
The Australian Umbrella Tree grows best if placed near a bright window with indoor temperatures of approximately 60° to 80°F (15° to 27°C), however, it can tolerate 40°F (4°) without any damage. As the tree gets larger, remember to repot the tree using a well-aerated potting mixture containing 50% or more organic matter. Water thoroughly, then allow the surface of potting mixture to dry before watering again.
#1 Lighting For Large Plants
Sometimes extra ingenuity is needed to provide adequate indoor lighting for large plants and small trees. The best possible light is natural sunlight, which surrounds the whole plant. Admittedly, this is a hard act to follow, so the guidelines below will help you use artificial light in the best possible ways and help you duplicate natural sunlight as closely as possible.
- Overhead Lighting
This is the most effective method of lighting and comes the closest to duplicating natural sunlight.
- Double Side Lighting
Placing lights at the sides, near both the top and bottom of the plant can be both effective and dramatic. If you can't provide light directly overhead, this is the next best solution to providing adequate lighting.
- Bottom Lighting
If your plant has a handsome trunk or interesting branch structure, supplemental bottom lighting can create a very dramatic effect. In addition, bottom lighting helps reduce lower leaf loss.
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Deer Control 101
If you have mature plants that are being devoured by deer -- it's time to take action! Deer Repellents can be very effective and easy to use.
Deer will almost always stay away from plants that offend two or more senses. Therefore, if a plant tastes and smells offensive deer will avoid the general area it's planted in. Deer resistant gardener use's this knowledge to their advantage.
Yardiac.com recommends using two deer deterrents together (one that offends the sense of smell and one that offends the sense of taste) they will render your tasty plant repulsive to deer.
The best combination we have found is:
Tree Guard or Hot Pepper Wax used in conjunction with Coyote Urine.
Using two products will activate the sense of smell and taste and encourage the deer to move on to more attractive foliage (hopefully not your neighbors) You can learn more about or purchase these products at Yardiac.com's animal repellent department.
Deer hate hot and spicy foods
After one little nibble of a plant coated with hot pepper wax they will definitely say, “No thank you!” when it comes time for seconds. Hot pepper wax combines hot cayenne pepper extract in a food-grade wax. Unlike some solutions, the wax will not wash off of your plants for several weeks.
Applying hot pepper wax to the surfaces of your plants & hanging dispensers filled with Coyote Urine is possibly the most effective method of protecting your plants from deer browsing. Why do predator urine and hot pepper wax work best when used together? Most deer deterrents work on the premise of “offending” one of the deer’s five senses: sight, taste, smell, hearing or touch. Predator urine works on the sense of smell, while hot pepper wax works on the sense of taste. Using these two products together you are not just offending one sense but two.
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